Feeling a bit sour this holiday? This festive cocktail is for you! As you sip this perfect Grinchy combo of sour and sweet with a generous dose of bourbon, your heart may grow a few sizes!

Grinchy Sour Ingredients (for one cocktail)

  • 1 ½ ounces of good bourbon or whiskey ( I like Maker’s Mark or Gentleman Jack)
  • ¾ ounces lemon juice
  • ¾ ounces orange simple syrup (recipe below)
  • 5-7 candied cranberries (recipe below)
  • 1 drop of green food coloring (optional, but definitely grinch-ish)
  • 5-6 cubes of ice
  • *Slice of candied orange (especially if you prefer sweeter cocktails)
  • *Cocktail shaker optional, but recommended

Place 2-3 ice cubes in cocktail shaker. Measure and pour liquid ingredients over ice. Shake well (about 30 seconds). Fill cocktail glass with ice (2-3 cubes). Pour shaken, chilled ingredients into glass. Top with sugared cranberries…and potentially a candied orange…and enjoy in a Grinchy fashion!

*If you don’t have a cocktail shaker, simply measure your ingredients into your glass…stir…then add the ice and garnishes…and sip after a minute or two so everything can chill!

Syrup and Garnish Ingredients

  • 1 cup plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar
  • * Another ½ – 1 cup sugar for candying
  • 1 ½ cup water
  • 1 medium orange (I prefer Valencia for looks; alas, they have more seeds)
  • 1 – 1 ¼ cup fresh cranberries, washed, sorted, and dried

Note: this recipe really depends on what type of cocktails you are making…and how many! If you only want to make Grinchy Sours, you could make 9 with this recipe…if you only want to make 3-4 Christmas cocktails with the candied cranberries, use ½ cup of cranberries …simply reduce the amount of orange syrup to 2 Tbsp in step 12….and then you’ll have a bit more orange syrup to use later. You can store this simple syrup in the fridge for 3-4 weeks and use for a variety of cocktails!

PS. If you’d like to double this recipe…chemistry matters! The way in which the sugar and water reduce over heat to create simple syrup depends on the ratio and cook time…so, to double this recipe, use 2 cups of water, 2 1/4 cups of sugar, and a larger, 9 in pot (follow the original recipe from Taste of Home).

Tools and Timing

  • Medium pot (7 or 8 in diameter; *see notes)
  • Heat-proof whisk
  • Tongs
  • Parchment Paper
  • Large cooling rack and cookie sheet
  • Glass baking dish (large enough that cranberries can be in a single layer)
  • Measuring cups and spoons
  • 2 spatulas
  • Timing: about 1 1/2 hours total; Yields: about 7 ounces simple orange syrup (and candied orange slices – which you can candy and serve, cover in chocolate and serve, or pop into your cocktails)
If you want to skip the food coloring…this becomes a much more sophisticated holiday cocktail!

Background

I first learned how to create these delectable garnishes by reading “How to Make Candied Orange Slices” from Taste of Home. Since then, one of the main things I have loved about playing with this recipe has been changing it to create a delicious orange syrup to use in bourbon and whiskey cocktails! It’s also fun to add cranberries to the mix for an extra Christmas-y feel!

This recipe is adapted from Taste of Home

Step-by-step

  1. Prep your orange: remember, you’ll be eating the peel, so wash your orange well. I use a soft bristle scrub brush and cold water. Wash and dry your orange, then slice into circles so the rind is between 1/4 and 3/8 inch (remove any seeds). Work to create consistency in your slices; for example, if your first slice is 1/4 in, cut them all 1/4 in. Throw out the slice with the stem, but use the bottom.
  2. Measure water and sugar into medium pot. Stir and turn to medium-high heat. Bring to a boil (about 3 minutes), whisking frequently to ensure sugar dissolves.
  3. Once mixture is boiling, reduce heat to medium.
  4. Add orange slices one at a time – you may want to use tongs to avoid splashing! Oranges can overlap slightly.
  5. Simmer (gently rolling bubbles) for 10 minutes.
  6. At 10 minutes, flip oranges and simmer for another 10 minutes
  7. After 20 minutes total, flip oranges again and reduce heat to medium low or low, depending on your stove and pot (you want a soft, rolling simmer). Cook another 10 minutes, flipping one more time at the halfway mark (after 5 minutes).
  8. *During these last 10 minutes, wash, sort, and dry your cranberries.
  9. **Prep cookie sheet with parchment paper; place a wire cooling rack on top of parchment paper on cookie sheet. Set close at hand.
  10. ***Set glass baking dish close at hand – fill a layer of dry cranberries.
  11. After the timer goes off for the oranges, remove oranges to drying rack in a single layer set over parchment paper to catch any drips (leave room for later for your cranberries).
  12. You should have about 1 ¼ cups of orange simple syrup now:
    • Pour ¼ cup hot simple syrup over cranberries; use first spatula to roll cranberries in syrup so they are coated evenly; and place dish in fridge for 30 minutes.
    • Let the rest of your syrup cool in the pan for these 30 minutes.
  1. After 30 minutes, sugar coated your cranberries (continue to let your syrup rest in the pan while you do this).
    • Fill a glass dish or a rimmed plate with a layer of sugar. *Do not mound the sugar (you want just enough to cover the bottom of the dish – otherwise, you’ll get sugar clumps on your garnishes)!
    • Get cranberries out of the fridge.  
    • Working in batches, transfer your cranberries into the dish in an even layer (I do 7-10 at a time), working not to pour in any extra syrup – I tip the pan away so the syrup runs down from the cranberries then scoop them out with a large spoon. Using a second spatula, roll them around until they are sugar coated. I even pick up sugar and sprinkle them to make sure they are coated. Return to drying rack for another 10 minutes. Continue until all cranberries are sugar coated.
  2. At this point, transfer your simple syrup to a jar with a lid or airtight container and let everything rest:
    • The syrup needs to cool completely before being transferred to the fridge – usually another 30 minutes.
    • The cranberries need to dry for another 10 – 15 minutes; then, they can be stored in an airtight container for later use.
    • The oranges need at least another 30 minutes (but they are better if you let them dry for 12-24 hours if you plan on sugaring them – however, you can use them in cocktails without letting them rest this long).
  3. After syrup is completely cool, place your simple syrup in the fridge.

Enjoy your cocktail creations!

Other Options

I LOVE chocolate covered oranges…they’re so delicious and so festive…and surprisingly easy to make! They’d be great to serve on a holiday cookie board…or just because!

If you don’t want to use the orange slices in a cocktail, serve as Candied Oranges or make Chocolate Dipped Candied Oranges.

Notes

When I use my stainless steel pot with a copper bottom, these cook at a lower temperature (a little under medium for the first stage and on low for the second stage) and the rolling boil is more even. When I use my aluminum pot, I have to have the heat a little higher (a bit above medium and medium-low, respectively) to achieve a continual, gentle simmer.

The original recipe calls for a Dutch oven, but mine is too big for a reduced recipe…so, depending on your equipment, watch your oranges and adjust the heat accordingly!